


Master of Four (Subject to One)

by dwgreatpond



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender, 陈情令 | The Untamed (TV), 魔道祖师 - 墨香铜臭 | Módào Zǔshī - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù, 魔道祖师 | Módào Zǔshī (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Avatar & Benders Setting, Attempt at Humor, Avatar!Wei Wuxian, Canon-Typical Violence, Dialogue Heavy, Light Angst, M/M, Mutual Pining, No beta we die like wei wuxian, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Other Ships Not Mentioned in Tags, Playing Calvinball with Cultivation, Sibling Bonding, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2021-01-13
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:46:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 12,603
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28077927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dwgreatpond/pseuds/dwgreatpond
Summary: The butterfly seemed so small, so fragile in his hands.“So you mean, this butterfly- this belonged to-”“Avatar Xiao Xingchen.”Jiang Cheng looks like he’s about to faint next to him, and Wei Ying can honestly relate.“Wei Wuxian, you are the Avatar.”-MDZS ATLA AU
Relationships: Jiāng Chéng | Jiāng Wǎnyín & Jiāng Yànlí & Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn, Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī/Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn
Comments: 2
Kudos: 48





	1. Air part 1

**Author's Note:**

> First work. Please enjoy.

Water Jiang. Earth Nie. Fire Wen. Air Lan. The four nations live together in peace. It is the job of the Avatar, master of all four elements, to maintain that peace.

Long ago, war raged in and around the four sects. Each of the four elements were made to be feared. The disparaging power gap between benders and non-benders, as well as the thirst for more power and influence held by those in power, made the notion of peace sound imposible.

As the legend states, when the world needed her most, the Avatar appeared. 

Lan An of Gusu mastered the four elements in battle and adversity. Wielding terrible power, she swept corruption from the leadership of the nations. Her research led to the development of golden core cultivation, allowing even non-benders to harness spiritual energy with training. On her journeys, water healed, fire warmed, and earth supported. With her signature musical cultivation style air bending, soothing melodies followed in her wake. 

Avatar Lan An died in a time of peace, a new Avatar was born, and the cycle began anew. 

☁︎𑁍☁︎𑁍☁︎

Wei Ying is late.

Of course he is. He can practically picture Jiang Cheng’s fist clenching tighter and tighter the longer he takes. In his defence, those lotus pods were begging him to take them. Plus, it’s his birthday. One doesn’t turn 15 everyday. Plus _plus_ , he’d definitely share with Jiang Cheng, so he can’t stay mad at him forever. Jiang Cheng’s brow does a funny little thing when he’s fighting with himself to stay mad at Wei Ying. Just the thought of it pulls a laugh from his chest. He indulges in it for a moment before his foot catches and he crashes to the ground.

“Ow…” Wei Ying glares at the traitorous rock behind him. When it offers no response, he sighs and turns his attention back to himself. His right knee sits squarely in the middle of squishy mud. If he wasn’t so late already, he might consider returning to his room to change. Instead he stands and swings a hand past his pants. All the moisture he can pull follows the hand in a stream of clear water, and he splashes it on to his rocky new friend. All there’s left to do is brush the dried mud from his clothes as best he can. At least the dirt isn’t so obvious against the dark gray of his robes. Determining his pants are as good as they’re going to get, he resumes his run towards the center hall. 

“Wei Wuxian!” a voice yells the moment he cracks the hall door open. Suddenly, Jiang Cheng is there to drag him inside. 

“Would it kill you to be on time for once?”

“Aw, come on. Be a little nicer to me.”

“Die.” and Wei Ying laughs.

“So, what am I late for anyway? Do you know?”

“All I know is that Mother is pissed, so hurry the fuck up.”

Jiang Cheng tugs his arm until they join Jiang Yanli in front of the dias seating Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan. 

“Uncle. Madam Yu.” Wei Ying bows in proper greeting. He suppresses a flinch when he feels his adoptive mother’s eyes narrow at his dirty clothes. Before she can say anything, Jiang Fengmian stands. 

“Wei Ying. So nice of you to join us.” He teases. Madam Yu stands beside him, clearing her throat.

“Wei Wuxian, listen up. This is important.” Immediately, Jiang Fengmian matches her seriousness. 

Wei Ying looks between them for a moment before bringing his hand to his chest.

“Am… am I dying?” His other hand rises to his forehead to swoon dramatically, earning a shout from his brother and an elbow from his sister.

“Ah, sorry, sorry,” Wei Ying laughs, “with this atmosphere, you’d think I’m terminal.” He reaches a hand out to poke the crease in Jiang Cheng’s forehead.

“Wei Wuxian. Shut up.” he says, swatting the hand away. 

Madam Yu clears her throat again. As attention turns back to her, she sighs letting some of the irritation melt from her face.

“Tomorrow the three of you will be going to study in Gusu. The Cloud Recesses.”

Wei Ying feels his back straighten. He doesn’t need to glance over to know his siblings are doing the same. The Cloud Recesses is the central hub of the Air Lan sect. Founded by Avatar Lan An, its also a center for learning cultivation and bending. Its strict discipline and rules are notorious, but there isn’t a famous cultivator today that didn’t study there and become better for it. 

Yet, what shocks Wei Ying is that she is sending him along with his siblings. When the Jiangs first took him in, he was just about the age children can begin meditation for their golden core and element present themselves in benders. 

Yu Ziyuan, also known as the Violet Spider, is the most famous waterbender of the Meishan Yu clan. With her precise, web-like control over water paired with her spiritual weapon, Zidian, Madam Yu earned her reputation as a powerful and very respected cultivator. 

Wei Ying had presented as a water bender not long after moving into the Jiang household. At the time, Madam Yu was training Jiang Yanli, who possessed a natural talent for water healing. She blatantly refused to instruct Wei Ying as well. Jiang Yanli took it upon herself to teach him any and all lessons she had learned, though he wasn’t nearly as inclined towards water healing. 

After about two years, she finally allowed him to attend lessons in person, as well as golden core cultivation training with Jiang Cheng. Wei Ying suspects Jiang Fengmian had a large hand in her change of heart.

She was a harsh and unforgiving teacher. Wei Ying knew all too well the pain of being on the wrong side of the Violet Spider’s fury. Wei Ying worked hard and earned his position as the head disciple of the Jiang Sect cultivation juniors. Still, a session with Madam Yu hardly goes by without Wei Ying feeling the sting of Zidian. Jiang Cheng says he’s basically asking for it with how much he messes around. But Wei Ying has long accepted it as a risk he’s willing to take, after all, how could he deprive his fellow disciples of his antics and entertainment. 

Wei Ying thought Madam Yu would use sending his siblings off as an excuse to have him in private lessons to beat the discipline into him herself. Though, upon thinking further, Wei Ying supposes outsourcing him like this will give her the peace and quiet she’s missed since he arrived. 

“Father, is something wrong?” Jiang Yanli’s voice draws him back to the situation at hand. 

Jiang Fengmian is staring at Wei Ying, concern written all over his face. After a moment, his eyes soften, and he steps off the dias towards him. From his sleeve, he produces a paper butterfly and holds it out.

“This is your’s. You were so small. I was there, at your zhuazhou when you picked it.” He smiles at the memory.

“You were nearing the end of your first year, and your parents brought you to me. It was still just a precaution back then. Avatar Xiao Xingchen had only been missing for a couple of years and most held hope that he was still alive, but water was the next in the cycle and it would do no good to potentially miss his successor.”

“Wait-” Wei Ying starts, realization dawning on him, but his uncle continues.

“We laid all of the toys in front of you, and you picked this one immediately. You picked this one because it’s yours and you recognized it as such. We all knew what that meant, but your parents… they wanted you to enjoy a normal childhood, well as normal as it could be traveling around as rogue cultivators.” a sad smile creeps across his face.

“When I found you those years later, I wanted to respect their wishes. I watched you grow up in their stead, but now its time for you to grow up a little more.”

The butterfly seems so small, so fragile in his hands.

“So you mean, this butterfly- this belonged to-”

“Avatar Xiao Xingchen.”

Jiang Cheng looks like he’s about to faint next to him, and Wei Ying can honestly relate. 

“Wei Wuxian, you are the Avatar.”

☁︎𑁍☁︎𑁍☁︎

“So… you’re the Avatar.” Jiang Cheng states into his bowl of lotus rib soup.

“Yup, sure am.” Wei Ying deadpans into his own bowl. The three of them had gone to the lotus pond to process. Wei Ying doesn’t know how long they’ve been there, but he knows none of them have moved since Jiang Yanli pushed the bowls into their hands. 

Jiang Yanli sighs and puts down her bowl, clearly giving up on finding the meaning of life floating with the pork. Wei Ying feels confident he can find it in his bowl if he stares a little harder, but his sister’s hands replace it. She squeezes his fingers.

“A-Xian. How do you feel?”

“I… I don’t know?” It comes out unsure.

“You’re the Avatar!” Jiang Cheng shouts, his bowl joining the others on the rock-turned-table near the pond’s edge. “What’s there to know!? We’ll go to Gusu, you’ll learn air bending, find more teachers, master the four elements, and restore balance to the universe or whatever the fuck.”

“... Do you think I can do it?” 

Jiang Cheng scoffs. 

“You can already waterbend, or did you forget?”

“A-Cheng…” Jiang Yanli warns. He scoffs again.

“What? Father was right. He needs to grow up.”

Wei Ying looks up to face his siblings. He feels a smirk pull at the corner of his mouth.

“Who me? But Xianxian is only three!” He pulls a hand from his sister’s and proudly holds up two fingers. 

“Dumbass! Can’t you count?”

“Oh, my bad.” He puts a finger down, leaving only the middle.

“Wei Wuxian!” Jiang Cheng yells, and Wei Ying cackles. 

“Ah, Shijie help me! A-Cheng’s a bully!”

“You piece o-” Jiang Yanli’s laughter interrupts him.

“You walked right into that one, A-Cheng!” She leans into Wei Ying as she laughs harder. Jiang Cheng’s cheeks flair in the face of her betrayal.

“I hate you both.” he says, his voice lacking any bite. He turns away, but Wei Ying can see it’s only to hide a small smile. 

“Alright, alright,” Jiang Yanli says, finally recovering enough to speak. “Go pack, both of you.”

“Aww, but Shijie my soup.” Wei Ying whines. He’s never let his Shijie’s lotus rib soup go to waste and he’s not going to start now, Avatar be damned. 

“I’ll have it heated and sent to your rooms.” she says, picking up all three bowls with ease. They look precarious on her petite hands. When he was 12, Wei Ying was curious enough to ask how she did it. She laughed and admitted was bending the soup so the bowl stayed in place around it. She tried to teach Wei Ying, but he splashed the near boiling broth on his hands upon taking a single step. His Shijie never failed to impress him. 

“Hurray! Let’s go, Jiang Cheng!” he grabs his arm and begins to pull him in the direction of their rooms.

“Let go of me, asshole.” Jiang Cheng says, falling into step beside him. Behind them Jiang Yanli lets out an exaggerated sigh.

“It sure would be nice to heat this up with bending. Oh, if only I knew someone who could fire bend.” she calls after them. 

“I’ll learn as fast as I can. Then I can be my Shijie’s personal flame, for all your soup warming needs!” Wei Ying calls over his shoulder with a wave. 

“I look forward to it!”

☁︎𑁍☁︎𑁍☁︎

The three of them leave early in the morning, well, what Wei Ying considers early. It’s about 8am, the autumn sun barely hanging on to the horizon. Just behind him, Jiang Cheng lets out a yawn. His brother has never been a morning person, not that Wei Ying has any room to talk. Wei Ying has always thrived at night, often staying up until what can be considered early morning. The only reason he isn’t dead on his feet like his brother is that he couldn’t sleep at all last night. Not sleeping means this morning is just an extension of last night, therefore it’s still his domain and he’s not tired. 

“You know, I heard you have to wake up at 5 every morning in Cloud Recesses.” Jiang Yanli calls to her brothers behind her. 

“Ugh, don’t remind me. A-Jie, I don’t know how you can be alive this early.”

“It comes with being a functional adult. One day you boys might get to try it.” She laughs.

“Buck up, Jiang Cheng! I believe in you!”

“Fuck off! You’re usually worse than I am. How are you already so annoying?”

“Ah, little brother, may you age well and find out.” he barely avoids the swipe aimed at his head. He takes that as his cue to catch up with Jiang Yanli.

“But seriously, how can one place have so many rules? What are there like 600?”

“2000 actually.” Jiang Yanli corrects.

“2000!? Damn, breaking all of them is going to take much longer than I thought.”

“You’re lucky you’re the Avatar or they’d turn you away at the gate.” Jiang Cheng says, trying to rub the sleep from his eyes. 

“Wow, thanks, A-Cheng!” 

“That wasn’t a compliment. Wipe that stupid grin off your face.”

“Alright, alright. It’s too early to start this now, boys.” 

The siblings fall into comfortable, familiar silence walking down the road. For a while, Wei Ying just takes in the scenery around them. In front of them, the mountains practically glow. The morning sun bouncing off red, orange, and yellow trees. Behind them, the boats grow smaller and smaller in the distance. All he hears is the rustle of leaves in the wind and the crunch of dirt beneath their boots. Its been awhile since he’s left Lotus Pier, so he allows himself to enjoy the quiet. Nearly 20 minutes pass before Jiang Cheng breaks it.

“Do… do you… How different do you think the classes will be? Between the bender and nonbender curriculum, I mean.”

The question catches Wei Ying off guard a moment. 

“Hmm, I know there’s some overlap because benders still have to train their golden cores. I’ve heard the golden core cultivation training program is pretty intensive, so I doubt you’ll have any extra free time.” Jiang Yanli supplies. 

“That’s good. There’ll be some overlap, at least…” Jiang Cheng mumbles. Wei Ying breaks ahead and begins to walk backwards in front of his brother. 

“Aww, A-Cheng,” he says, dragging his name out, “worried you’ll be lonely? Don’t you fret! This gege will annoy you so much in our shared classes, you’ll be glad to see me go to my airbending classes!” He swings his arms as wide as he can to emphasize his point. 

“Ugh, don’t. Forget I said anything.”

“I bet you guys could room together too.”

“Shijie! What a fantastic idea! Just like when we were kids, A-Cheng!”

“A-Jie, not you too.”

“Well I don’t want you to get lonely either, A-Cheng.”

“I regret my whole life.” he groans before snapping back to Wei Ying. “Dumbass, walk straight and shut up.”

“Hey! I didn’t say anything!” he protests.

“And yet you’re still so loud. Turn around before I break your legs.”

Wei Ying blows a raspberry before turning to walk forward again. He slows slightly to walk back in line with his siblings. They fall back into silence. To his side, Jiang Yanli gives Jiang Cheng’s elbow a reassuring squeeze. Sensing his gaze on her, she moves to hook her other arm around Wei Ying’s. He can’t help the smile stretching across his face as he turns back towards the mountains. Side by side, the three march on together. 

☁︎𑁍☁︎𑁍☁︎

It’s mid afternoon of their second day of travel when the trio reach Caiyi Town at the base of the mountain housing the Cloud Recesses. The raised altitude blows a cold breeze straight through Wei Ying, and he pulls his robes a little closer to himself with a shiver.

“Brrrr. Hey, let’s stop in town for a bit. We can buy some wine to warm us up! Emperor’s Smile is supposed to be the best!”

“Learn to firebend if you’re so cold, you idiot alcoholic.”

“A-Cheng, don’t be such a bully. Just because I can drink circles around you-”

“How about you drown already!”

Both brothers stop in their tracks when Jiang Yanli steps between them. 

“Hmm, that’s better.” She turns to Jiang Cheng, “A-Cheng, don’t bully your brother,” she turns away, ignoring an indignant humph, “and A-Xian, I know for a fact alcohol is prohibited in the Cloud Recesses.”

“All the more reason to buy! I have 2000 rules to break, remember.”

“A-Xian.” the warning clear in her voice.

“Fine, fine.” he sighs, “But we should walk through the market anyway. I want to check it out! If we see any Emperor’s Smile, you two can just conveniently turn around! Plausible deniability and all that.” He winks.

“Like hell! First thing I’ll do is rat you out!”

Wei Ying laughs as he skips ahead to the market. It’s quite lively. Many vendors sell trinkets to tourists. Most are blue and white bits and bobs covered in the cloud symbol of the Lan Sect. Some even have the 3-swirl symbol of airbending. 

Sure enough, part way through the market, Wei Ying spots a cart selling jugs of Emperor’s Smile. Jiang Yanli brushes the side of her nose with her finger before her attention is suddenly drawn by some silver Lan style hair pins. Wei Ying turns to make eye contact with his brother. Jiang Cheng tsks before he too looks away, suddenly finding something very interesting in the sky above the market. 

Wei Ying laughs to himself before sauntering up to the stall. With his most charming smile, he purchases three jars of the wine, and slips them, discreetly, into his robe sleeve. 

☁︎𑁍☁︎𑁍☁︎

They made sure to leave Caiyi with enough time to make it up the mountain before nightfall. As fate would have it, exactly enough time as the sun begins to dip into the horizon right as the silver arch comes into view. Two junior Lan disciples stand guard, their flowing white robes blending slightly with the arch. Wei Ying smiles and walks up to them. He bows in greeting.

“Hello! We come from Lotus Pier.” he says before extending a letter. Jiang Fengmian had sent it with them, its content undoubtedly exposing him as the Avatar. The shock on the Lan’s face as he reads is all but confirmation. Wei Ying offers a little wave when he looks up to gawk at him. The Lan lets out a squeak before turning to whisper something to his equally shocked friend. The other nods before bowing and turning on his heels to leave. Wei Ying smirks at his interesting stride. His legs move with all the speed of a run without the arm and body movements to be considered running. The Lan left behind clears his throat and bows.

“Miss Jiang, Master Jiang, Master Wei, thank you for your patience. My associate will return shortly. This Lan apologizes for the inconvenience.”

“Do not worry about it.” Jiang Yanli reassures.

“Yeah, I have to finish admiring your gate before I enter anyway.” Wei Ying adds, earning an elbow from Jiang Cheng.

Not 2 minutes pass before the Lan returns. 

“...didn’t know what to do, so thank you, Second Master Lan.” Wei Ying catches the end of a sentence when he comes into view, now leading someone new down the path towards them. He looks up to greet them and his breath catches in his throat.

This new person is taller, a little broader, but looks to be about the same age as Wei Ying. Each handsome feature on his face looks to be carved from ivory, carefully crafted into a blank neutral giving nothing away. His mourning-like Lan robes fit perfectly tailored to the boy’s form, pristine and graceful as they sway in time with his walk. If his clothes weren’t moving, Wei Ying might have thought an angel was floating towards him. Behind the boy, long hair cascades down his strong shoulders and back to his waist. It looks so soft and smooth, Wei Ying thinks he could card his fingers through and not find a single knot or tangle. The rich, black color contrasts perfectly with the white of his robes and the long ribbon tied around his forehead. 

Mr. Handsome stops in front of him. Without saying a word, he bows in greeting and holds a hand out. Now close enough to see long eyelashes framing bright, amber eyes, Wei Ying can’t help thinking this boy is the exact definition of aesthetic beauty. It takes him perhaps a moment too long to realize he’s asking for the letter. Wei Ying snaps to attention, returns greeting, and quickly hands it over. 

Wei Ying feels a bit nervous watching him read it so stoically. His eyes quickly scan down the page before he looks back up. Wei Ying threatens to beat out of his chest. The boy gives a slight nod.

“Mn. Welcome.” He gestures the siblings inside before turning to lead them down the path. Wei Ying’s feet follow immediately. He clears his throat, barely aware of his siblings behind them. 

“Ah, thanks!” he speeds up to walk next to him. “But I could have enjoyed your gate for a couple more hours at least! Oh well, I’m sure there are plenty of other beautiful things to look at inside Cloud Recesses. Right? Maybe you could show me! Give me the full tour!”

His rambling is rewarded with a small glance to the side, one eyebrow raised in question. Wei Ying feels the desire for this boy’s attention shift from a want to a _need_.

“Were you shocked? To find out I’m the Avatar that is. I bet you were. I hope you’re not intimidated ahaha. Don’t worry I can tell the two of us are going to get along! You can tell everyone about Wei Ying - you can call me Wei Ying, by the way - tell everyone about your best friend, Wei Ying, the Avatar! I’ll do the same! Say, what’s your name? I felt so close to you already, I forgot to aACK-” Wei Ying feels his collar yank back suddenly.

“Shut. _Up_ .” Jiang Cheng is trying to keep his voice low. He releases Wei Ying’s robes. “Don’t you know who it is you’re bothering? You heard the junior earlier. That’s the Second Master Lan. You know, _the Second Twin Jade of Lan._ Surely, you’re not that stupid.”

“Ah, never underestimate me, my brother.”

“Lan Zhan, courtesy name Lan Wanji. He’s very accomplished and about the same age as you. Father recommended you try to learn from him, A-Xian. Don’t you remember?” Jiang Yanli tries to remind him.

“Hmm, yes of course, how could I forget!” Wei Ying says despite searching his memory and coming up dry. The events two days ago were a lot for him so his mind is a bit fuzzy. 

He contemplates a moment before catching back up with Lan Wanji.

“Lan Wanji. Lan Wanji. Hey, Lan Zhan. Lan-ergege. Lan Zhaaaaan.” Wei Ying doesn’t miss Lan Wanji’s eye twitch.

“Where are you taking us? Are we almost there?”

“Mn. Almost there.” His response makes Wei Ying pause.

He spares a moment to finally take in his surroundings. They are no longer on the mountain pass. In fact, they look to be in the heart of Cloud Recesses. Wei Ying suddenly feels the eyes of all the passing Lan disciples trying not to stare. 

“Here.” Lan Wangji says, opening a door for them to pass through. 

Once on the other side, they are greeted by two more Lans judging by the white robes and forehead ribbons. One is an older gentleman, his stern expression painted onto tight skin. The other is younger. He looks to be a few years older than Jiang Yanli. His beauty is strikingly similar to Lan Wangji’s, only enhanced by a soft smile and kind eyes. 

“Brother,” Lan Wangji greets, “I present the Avatar and his siblings.”

“Wangji, thank you.” the First Twin Jade of Lan turns to greet them. “Hello, I am Lan Xichen. This is my uncle, Lan Qiren. Welcome to Cloud Recesses. It is an honor.”

The three siblings bow deeply back. Jiang Yanli speaks first.

“Thank you for having us. We are honored to be here.”

Lan Xichen smiles and Wei Ying feels like shielding his eyes. Next to him, Jiang Cheng’s face scrunches into an expression he’s never seen his brother wear before. 

“The three of you have traveled a long way. I imagine you’ll want to settle into your rooms before dinner. But first, I hope you’ll indulge me for a moment to go over scheduling.” He pauses a moment before continuing. “The rising bell rings at 5 every morning. Breakfast is served from 5:30 to 7. At 7, disciples come to this pavilion for lectures and meditations led by Lan Qiren.” He gestures to his uncle beside him who nods. “At 10, everyone will go to the fields for drill training and conditioning in the Lan style of cultivation until lunch, which is served from noon to 2. Afterwards, groups split for afternoon lessons.”

He turns first to Jiang Cheng, “Non benders return to the fields.” then to Jiang Yanli, “Guest benders come back here.”

Finally, he turns to Wei Ying. He resists the urge to shrink.

“Master Wei, you will eventually join the Lan junior disciples for afternoon lessons, however we feel you would benefit to start with private lessons while you learn the airbending basics. I will personally oversee your training. Do you play an instrument?” Wei Ying gulps before nodding and pulls the dizi from his sleeve. 

“Good. Group training lasts until dinner, which is served from 6 to 8. After dinner, you will have free time. I invite you to explore the Cloud Recesses. Curfew is at 9. Disciples are expected to return to their rooms and remain quiet until the rising bell. Do you have any questions?”

Wei Ying doesn’t. He looks to his siblings.

“No, thank you very much.” Jiang Yanli bows.

“In that case, please allow us to escort you to your rooms. Miss Jiang if you would follow me. Wangji?”

“Mn.” Lan Wangji says turning to Wei Ying and Jiang Cheng. 

Lan Xichen bows farewell and turns to leave. Jiang Yanli follows.

“See you later.” she calls to her brothers before the door shuts behind her. 

“Follow me.” Lan Wangji’s voice draws Wei Ying’s attention back. He turns back to face him and tries to ignore the way his stomach flutters when Lan Wangji meets his eyes. The boy doesn’t say another word before walking towards the doors. 

“Right!” Wei Ying chases after him, “Take me to my room, Lan Wangji. Ha! I’ve always wanted to say that. Minus your name, of course. That’s be weird if I wanted to say that to you specifically. We’ve only just met after all. I do love your name, though. Mn, Lan Zhan, Lan Zhan.”

“Oi, don’t start that shit again,” Jiang Cheng interjects as they make their way back outside, “wait ‘til I’m not around to start flirting.”

The sun had fully disappeared while they were inside. Open flames illuminate their path.

“What? I’m not flirting.”

“Not well. Anyways, save it.”

Wei Ying frowns at his brother, confused. 

“Aw, A-Cheng, do you want me to talk to you that badly?”

“Shut up before you spit out the last of your brain cells.”

Surprising even himself, Wei Ying does shut up. 

Back in Lotus Pier, he was quite well known for being a shameless flirt. It was fun and never serious. The girls back home knew it too. Most of the time, the reactions he got were more annoyed than flustered. But, above all, it was always intentional.

Wei Ying didn’t think he was flirting with Lan Wangji. He just wanted his attention. Something about his straight back and blank expression feels like a challenge. Wei Ying wants to break that composure, even just a little. The chill that shoots through his spine every time those hazel eyes look at him has absolutely nothing to do with it. 

The three walk in silence the rest of the way to the dormitory. 

“Here.” Lan Wanji slides the door open for the brothers. “I will have food sent to you while you settle in.” He gives them a moment to take that in before leaving without another word. 

“Well,” Wei Ying’s eyes lock on the spot Lan Wanji used to occupy, “home, sweet home, little brother.” With that, they begin to unpack their things.

The room is quite nice. Bed cots sit on raised platforms on opposite sides of the room. At the foot of each sits a chest. Inside, Wei Ying finds white robes provided for him, completed by purple sashes to identify him as a Jiang disciple. Even with the spare robes, there is still enough room for Wei Ying’s travel clothes. He also tucks the jars of Emperor’s Smile in with the fabric. 

“Don’t get caught with that. I don’t want to be kicked out of Cloud Recesses because you’re an alcoholic. Are you going to drink it tonight?”

“I won’t get caught. And no. I’m saving them for after we make some friends. We can have a party!”

“That sounds like you’re begging to get caught.”

“Fine,” Wei Ying pouts, “see if I share any with you.”

Wei Ying closes the chest. On top, he lays his dizi next to his Jiang clarity bell. 

In the center of the room, there is a low table. At the back, a privacy screen hides a wash basin. The rest of the room is empty save for the sword stand near the entrance. 

There’s a knock at the door. Wei Ying puts his sword, Suibian, away next to Jiang Cheng’s Sandu as he goes to answer. 

“Good evening.” the attendant bows and offers a tray of food.

“Ah, thank you.” Wei Ying takes it.

“You may leave the tray outside when you are finished eating.” He bows and takes his leave. 

Wei Ying brings the tray to the table and sits down. Jiang Cheng joins him. 

There’s rice and steamed vegetables along with two bowls of light broth. It all looks unbelievably bland.

“Damn, I should have asked for some chili oil.”

“Dumbass. Just be grateful and eat.” Jiang Cheng says, but his face upon taking the first bite informs Wei Ying his assessment was absolutely correct. There’s no way Wei Ying will be able to survive without any spice on his food. He’ll have to ask about chili oil. If it comes to it, he can pop down the mountain to Caiyi for some. 

A bell sounds a little after they finish eating.

“That must be curfew.” Jiang Cheng says, “Come on, let’s go to sleep. It’s going to be a long day tomorrow.”

Wei Ying agrees. They blow out the lanterns and retire to their beds.

“Good night, Jiang Cheng.”

“Mn. Sleep well, Wei Ying.”

☁︎𑁍☁︎𑁍☁︎

Wei Ying tried to sleep. He really did. Staring up at the ceiling resulted only in boredom. Somewhere around 2 hours have passed and Wei Ying is still wide awake. Judging by the sounds of light snoring across the room, Jiang Cheng has left Wei Ying alone in sleepless purgatory. He sighs and sits up.

Carefully, he creeps around the side of the bed to open the chest. He grabs one jar of Emperor’s Smile.

‘Two jars is more than enough for a party. Besides, I bought it and therefore should be allowed to enjoy it.’ Wei Ying rations to himself. He quietly shuts the chest and makes his way out of the dorm.

The cold night air is refreshing, but still sends a shiver down Wei Ying’s back. 

‘Good thing you’re here to warm me up.’ He smiles down at the jar of liquor in his hand. 

Cloud Recesses looks so cold without the quiet movements of Lan disciples or the warm glow of lanterns. All the fires have been put out since it’s after curfew. Still, an air of grace and refinement remains under just the light of the moon. 

Wei Ying walks around for a while. He familiarizes himself with the paths around Cloud Recesses. He visits the various places he will be attending classes in the morning. Eventually, he bores of walking and looks for a place to settle down for a drink. 

All of Cloud Recesses is surrounded by a wall. Wei Ying picks a spot fairly close to the lecture hall. He jumps on top and admires Cloud Recesses from above. Behind him, a sheer cliff face stands tall and looming. 

“Alright, it's time you and I got acquainted!” he uncaps the jar. 

The wine is very smooth going down. The slight burn tickles his tongue and warms his chest. 

“Oh wow, they were right about you!” Wei Ying says, a comfortable buzz settling at the front of his mind. He takes another swig before lounging back on his rooftop perch. 

‘Wei Wuxian, you are the Avatar.’ his uncle’s voice repeats over and over in his mind. 

‘Yeah well I didn’t ask to be.’ Wei Ying drinks more. 

‘... master the four elements, and restore peace to the universe or whatever the fuck.’ Jiang Cheng’s voice interjects.

‘The fuck is right. The universe is already at peace, so can’t it leave me alone.’ Wei Ying thinks, but he knows it’s not fair. Sure, he had grown up in a time of peace, but even he wasn’t so naive to miss the signs of tension growing between the Sects, especially when it came to the Fire Wen sect. 

Wei Ying pushes the sigh on his breath back down with more alcohol. 

Surely, others of his generation would be far better suited to be the Avatar. He thinks of his siblings.

‘No, Shijie is far too kind, she’d let people walk all over her as the Avatar. If only Jiang Cheng was a bender…’ Wei Ying stops himself. The guilt blossoms in his stomach. Even though he can see how amazing Jiang Cheng is, he knows being the only non-bender in his immediate family puts a huge chip on his shoulders. Wei Ying sees him as everything he’s not. Jiang Cheng is reliable. He knows when to be serious. People listen to him and would gladly follow, Wei Ying included. Jiang Cheng is a natural born leader. Wei Ying also knows if he told him all that, Jiang Cheng would only get annoyed and probably smack him. 

‘Oh well. My idiot brother has time to figure it out.’ he takes another swig.

‘If only the cycle had settled on another clan. Like if it had been the Air Lan sect’s turn to produce an Avatar, the universe would have nothing to worry about!’

“First Twin Jade, Lan Xichen, would be the perfect Avatar.” he calls to no one in particular. 

Golden eyes flash through his mind.

Lan Wangji. 

Something about him draws him in.

‘Stop flirting.’ Jiang Cheng chastises in his head.

‘I am _not_ trying to flirt with Lan Zh- Lan Wangji.’ Wei Ying nearly chugs the rest of his wine. The blush on his cheeks is the alcohol’s fault and no on- nothing else. 

“Curfew was at 9.” Wei Ying jumps at the voice, nearly spilling what’s left in his jar.

There, at the foot of his wall, white robes glowing in the moonlight, stands Lan Wangji. 

“Lan Zhan! You scared me.”

“It is late. You should be asleep.”

“Ah, I know, I know. I couldn’t sleep, so I snuck out for a drink.” He holds up the jar, “You’re welcome to join me!”

Lan Wangji frowns, “Alcohol is prohibited in the Cloud Recesses.”

“Is it? I had no idea! You have far too many rules here. How am I to know them all as I’ve just arrived?”

Lan Wangji pauses, then he raises an arm to point at Wei Ying. Rather he’s pointing behind him. Wei Ying turns around.

“Oh…” Written on the cliff wall behind him, 2000 rules sit carefully carved into the stone. 

“Hmm, it’s going to take me a long time to read and remember all these rules. Perhaps, you can read them out to me.” He laughs and goes to finish his wine. Before he can bring the jar to his lips, Wei Ying has to dodge away from a flash of blue light. When he looks back up, he’s staring down the point of Lan Wangji’s sword.

In his haste, the jar had fallen from his hands and was quickly on its way to shattering on the ground below. Before it could, Wei Ying waved a hand to bend the liquid out. He brought it to float in an orb next to his head. 

“Now that wasn’t very nice.” Wei Ying smirks, “Certainly not the warm welcoming I was expecting from the great Air Lan sect.” He brings a hand up to dramatically tap his chin.

“Tell you what! I’ll forgive you if you buy me another jar of Emperor’s Smile. What do you say, Lan Zhan?”

“Ridiculous.”

“I could never!” he laughs. Wei Ying purses his lips together, and turns to drink the wine out of the air.

“Delicious! Gusu truly has the most delicious alcohol!”

Lan Wangji purses his lips, but lowers and sheaths his sword.

“You should go to sleep.”

Wei Ying lets out a yawn. “You know, I’m finally getting tired. I think I will. Walk me back to my room?”

Lan Wangji stares at him for a moment before jumping off the roof and walking in the direction of the dorms. 

The walk back is quiet, serene. Wei Ying head feels soft and fuzzy from the wine. It's doing a fantastic job at fending off his earlier thoughts, though, his view of Lan Wangji's back may also have something to do with it.

When they reach it, Lan Wangji once again slides the door open for Wei Ying to enter. 

“Get some sleep.” and then he’s gone.

Wei Ying stares at the spot in the doorway that always seems to be missing Lan Wangji. Another yawn pulls from his chest. He’s asleep as soon as his head hits the pillow.


	2. Air part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the first day of classes for the Jiang Siblings. Time to make some friends (and maybe an enemy).

The rising bell is perhaps the most unpleasant sound Wei Ying has ever heard. It’s the exact same bell that rang at curfew, but it wasn’t 5 in the morning back then. 

Jiang Cheng lets out a groan at the same time as Wei Ying. At least this time the brothers are suffering together. 

“Fuck.”

“Too early for that, A-Cheng.”

“Shut up.” 

Wei Ying braces for the cold before throwing the blanket off himself. He crosses the room to do the same to Jiang Cheng’s. 

“Rise and shine, Brother!”

“You’re dead to me.” Jiang Cheng glares at him, but Wei Ying is already off to get ready. 

Within the hour, the two are ready and out the door for breakfast. While walking down the path, Wei Ying is hit with a particularly large yawn. He lifts a hand to cover his mouth and feels his elbow strike something on the way up. 

“Hey!” 

“Oh, sorry about that.” Wei Ying laughs, “I didn’t see you there.”

“Well, please be more aware of your surroundings in the future.” The boy huffs, and with a dramatic swing of his sleeves he walks away towards the dining pavilion. Wei Ying notes his golden sash, identifying him as a member of the Jin sect, a large and rich sect within the fire nation. 

“Damn, what a peacock.” Wei Ying says after him. 

“Your fault for bumping into him.”

“How cruel, A-Cheng! You won’t even defend your brother’s honor.”

“Shut up. Come on, A-jie is going to beat us to breakfast.”

Jiang Yanli did beat them to breakfast. She waves them over after they receive their rations of unseasoned congee and steamed vegetables. Wei Ying frowns at the food as he sits down.

“Shijie, the food here is so terrible, I may die.” he whines.

“You’ll be fine. Maybe I spoiled you too much.”

It’s then, Wei Ying looks around and notices another person sitting at the table with them.

“Hello!” he greets with a bright smile.

“This is Luo Qingyang, my roommate.” Jiang Yanli introduces. “Mianmian, these are my brothers, Jiang Wanyin and Wei Wuxian.”

“Mianmian!” Wei Ying says. Luo Qingyang’s ears heat up a bit at the nickname. “Have you been here long? What’s it like? Ahh, I’m so jealous you get to room with Shijie. Your roommate is much better than mine!”

“Hey!”

“A-Xian, you’re being overwhelming.” she smiles and sighs, “You know, the two of us bonded over the shared burden of watching over rowdy boys.”

Wei Ying throws his hand to his chest in false offence. Jiang Yanli laughs at him.

“So did you come to Gusu with someone else from your sect?” Jiang Cheng asks.

“Unfortunately.” she laughs a little, “Jin Zixuan is perhaps my oldest friend and I love him, but gods can he be annoying.”

“I know the feeling.” Jiang Cheng says elbowing Wei Ying.

“How rude! Mianmian doesn’t think I’m annoying, right?”

“Keep calling me that and we’ll see.”

“You don’t like it? You can call me YuanDao!”

“Alright, that’s enough A-Xian.” Jiang Yanli says while Jiang Cheng elbows him again, “Eat your breakfast.”

Wei Ying grimaces back down at his vegetables, but picks up his chopsticks regardless.

“So where is your friend? Jiang Cheng and I will take care of him.”

“You can try.” she says pointing to the side, “He’s over there sulking, probably.”

Wei Ying follows her gaze in time to see the guy from earlier pointedly turning away from them.

“That guy?!” Wei Ying exclaims at the same time Jiang Cheng mutters, “The peacock?”

“Oh, so you’ve met?” Luo Qingyang raises an eyebrow.

“We may have run into each other earlier.” Wei Ying laughs, “Anyways, let’s eat! Wouldn’t want this _delicious_ food to go to waste.”

☁︎𑁍☁︎𑁍☁︎

Wei Ying is falling asleep. Lan Qiren’s voice is dry and flat, and he hasn’t stopped talking for an hour and a half. Wei Ying suspects this might be his fault.

“I feel you all would benefit to know the rules of Cloud Recesses. Today, for our lecture, I will read them out to you.” he had said after everyone had filed into the lecture hall.

So now, here they are, about 1500 rules in, and Wei Ying is bored out of his mind. Lan Qiren slowly paces around the room as he drones on. 

He had tried to entertain himself by staring into the back of Lan Wangji’s head, but the Second Twin Jade sits straight and still like a statue. Wei Ying’s eyelids droop if he looks too long.

Then, he spots Jiang Cheng’s head bob across the room. It seems his brother is also struggling to stay awake. An idea sparks in Wei Ying’s mind. Subtly, he pulls a scrap of parchment into his lap and draws a sleepy Jiang Cheng. He folds it carefully and waits. 

Lan Qiren completes a lap and begins another, turning away from Wei Ying. Wei Ying takes his chance to throw the paper, with perfect aim, to hit his brother upside the head. Or at least, it would have. 

The paper is stopped dead in its tracks when a white clad hand shoots out to intercept it.

Lan Wangji looks back to glare at Wei Ying, who only beams back, innocently. As Lan Wangji turns to resume his statue impersonation, Wei Ying hears a small giggle beside him. He turns to face a boy hiding his face with a fan.

Wei Ying gives him a smirk and a shrug. _What can you do?_

The boy gives him a solemn nod. _There’s nothing to do._

Wei Ying holds in a laugh. He points to himself and mouths, ‘Wei Wuxian.’

The boy closes his fan and gestures it to himself. ‘Nie Huaisang.’ he mouths back. 

Wei Ying smiles and begins to offer a greeting when Nie Huaisang suddenly reopens his fan. Shrinking behind it, he begins pointing forward. Wei Ying follows the direction only to find himself locking eyes with Lan Qiren.

“Wei Wuxian. Please repeat the last five rules.”

“Of course.” he says, standing, “Be strict with yourself. Be easy on others. Do not hold grudges. Love and respect yourself. Maintain your own discipline.” Wei Ying finishes with a bow.

Lan Qiren’s face looks unreadable for a moment before he clears his throat. “Very good. Everyone, let us continue.”

Wei Ying sits down when their teacher resumes his pacing. He turns to wink at Nie Huaisang, who flashes him a thumbs up. 

When the lecture is finally over, Nie Huaisang meets him. 

“You’re a true hero, Wei Wuxian! I don’t think I’d survive being called out in front of the class like that.”

“What can I say? I live to stir trouble!” he laughs. 

At that moment, Lan Wangji stops in front of them. Silently, he holds out a scrap of parchment for Wei Ying, then walks away. Looking at it, Wei Ying realizes it’s the drawing he tried to toss at Jiang Cheng. 

“Ah, thanks for holding on to this for me, Lan Zhan!” he calls after him. Besides him, Nie Huaisang hides behind his fan once again. 

“You’re so familiar! But the Second Twin Jade is so intimidating.”

“Huh? Oh yeah, Lan Zhan and I are super close. Come on. I’m new here so you should show me to the fields.” Wei Ying had found the fields on his walk the night before, but he was enjoying the company of his new friend.

“So, are you from Qinghe? Are you a bender?”

“I am, but,” he sighs, “no, I’m not a bender. Are you?”

“You could say that. But hey, there’s nothing wrong with that. My brother’s a non-bender too. You two can hang out in class!”

“Oi, Wei Wuxian!”

“Ah, speak of the devil.” he stops so his brother can catch up.

“Thanks a lot for the most boring lecture of my life.”

“Hey, why are you blaming me?!”

“So, it wasn’t your fault?”

“Well, I never said that.”

“You-” but Wei Ying interrupts him.

“Oh, Jiang Cheng! Meet my new best friend, Nie Huaisang!”

“Hello there.” Nie Huaisang says, still behind his fan. 

Wei Ying begins walking towards the fields again. His companions unconsciously follow behind him.

“Oh, hi… I… uh, like your fan.” Jiang Cheng says. Nie Huaisang beams at him.

He folds the fan and hands it to Jiang Cheng for a better look.

“Thank you, so do I!”

“Wow… this looks like an old air bending fan.”

“Seriously?! Nie Huaisang, that’s so cool! Where’d you get it? Wei Ying calls back to them.

Nie Huaisang takes the fan back, “Well now, Master Wei, that’s a secret. Let’s just say I have some connections.” He gives the fan a flourish. 

“Alright, Master Nie, keep your secrets.” They laugh the rest of the way to the field. 

They are some of the last to arrive, so they fall into lines behind the other disciples. The training fields are wide. At the far side, the ground slopes up a steep hill. The grass all around hangs on to the last threads of green from the summer. 

All at once, the field grows silent. Wei Ying looks up to see Lan Wangji make his way to the front. He bows. Wei Ying bows back with the rest of the disciples. 

“Mn. Let’s begin.” 

Lan Wangji begins leading the group through drills. It takes Wei Ying a little while to get used to the basic differences between the Lan and Jiang styles. (His slowness has nothing to do with how graceful and angelic Lan Wangji looks.) 

Once everyone’s found a rhythm, Lan Wanji begins to walk around. He corrects people here and there, and offers nods of encouragement. He eventually makes his way to the back of the group. Wei Ying feels himself falter with his eyes on him.

‘Geez, am I sure I’m the Jiang head discipl-’ but before he can complete the thought, he feels a foot behind his own and a hand on his elbow as Lan Wangji corrects his form.

“Like this.”

“Ahaha, thank you, Head Disciple Lan.” Wei Ying tries not to think about how close he’s standing.

“Mn.” he nods, then moves on to the next disciple. Wei Ying thinks he sees his ears tint pink as he walks away. 

For the rest of the drills, Wei Ying focuses harder than he has in years on keeping his form perfect. 

☁︎𑁍☁︎𑁍☁︎

By the time they’re dismissed for lunch, Wei Ying has worked up quite the sweat.

“Hey, Nie Huaisang, come eat with me and Jiang Cheng.”

“I’d love to, but I usually eat with my roommate.”

Oh, well, invite him along then! We’re also going to eat with our sister and her roommate.”

“Sure, I’ll ask. Oh, there he is.” Nie Huaisang dives into the crowd.

“Wonder who it is.”

“No idea.” Jiang Cheng says, “Why are you so sweaty?”

“Because we just worked out, obviously.”

Nie Huaisang emerges back, pulling someone along.

“Oh, come on! It’s about time you made some new friends, Jin Zixuan. Hey guys, I’m back! This is my roomma-”

“It’s you again!” Wei Ying points a finger.

Jin Zixuan groans, “You people again. Are you following me or something?” 

“Hm, I seem to recall you were the one staring at me all breakfast.” Wei Ying says, and Jin Zixuan huffs.

“Dang, I miss out on all the fun when I oversleep.” Nie Huaisang says.

“Idiot, not everythings about you. I bet he was just mad that our sister stole his breakfast date.” Jiang Cheng says.

“You know, I really can’t tell whose side you’re on, A-Cheng.”

“Not yours, that’s for sure.”

At the same time, Wei Ying hears Nie Huaisang laugh, “Is that so? Lao Qinglang finally had enough of you?”

“Whatever. If she wants to sit with that plain girl, I won’t stop her.” he crosses his arms.

“Plain girl, huh? I hope you're not talking about my Shijie.”

“Oh, am I?” Jin Zixuan shoots back.

“How dare yo-”

“What? She looks plain, so I called her plain. That’s just stating fact.”

“Why yo-” Wei Ying stops, feeling a hand on each shoulder. He turns to face the owner of the smaller. “Shijie.”

She just smiles at him.

“Oi, eat with us or don’t, but don’t be rude!” Luo Qingyang flicks Jin Zixuan on the forehead.

“Fine.” he turns to walk away.

“You can apologize in class!” she calls after him then turns to Jiang Yanli, “I’m sorry about him.”

“Don’t worry about it!” she takes her hand off Wei Ying’s shoulder, “A-Xian, you should apologize too. You shouldn’t start fights.”

“Yeah,” Jiang Cheng adds, “fighting your first day isn’t a great look.”

Wei Ying brushes his hand off his other shoulder, “Don’t pretend you weren’t just as mad.”

“Yeah but I, at least, have some self control.”

“Oh my little brothers, what will I do with you? Let’s go eat! I’m Jiang Yanli, their sister, and resident plain girl. It’s nice to meet you.” Wei Ying doesn’t miss the twinge of sadness in her eyes.

“Nie Huaisang. Nice to meet you.” 

☁︎𑁍☁︎𑁍☁︎

They finished eating another meal of plain rice and steamed vegetables, when Nie Huaisang mentions a nice place to hang out. He leads the way through the woods to a cliff side. A waterfall cascades down into a clearing.

“This is one of the best places I’ve found so far.”

“How long have you been here anyway?” Wei Ying asks.

Nie Huaisang pulls his fan out and answers simply, “Long enough.”

Wei Ying eventually finds out he’d been in Cloud Recesses at least half a year. Luo Qingyang mentions she and Jin Zixuan have been there for about a month. 

“Mm yes, yes. Come, my children. I, Nie Huaisang, will teach you all I know to survive the Cloud Recesses.”

“And I’ll listen when I want to stick around a whole year.” Jiang Cheng teased.

From there the new friends’ conversation jumps around, telling stories from Cloud Recesses and their respective homes. 

After some time, Wei Ying sees Jiang Yanli, who is sitting across from him, jump a bit.

“Shijie, are you alright?”

“Yes, I… I just got a little cold there for a second. Anyway, A-Xian! I wanted to ask you something, or rather, about someone.”

“Um… Alright.”

“How do you feel about Lan Wangji?” Luo Qingyand shoots Jiang Yanli an unreadable look at the question. Nie Huaisang begins to snicker behind his fan.

“Ah, him.” Wei Ying feels caught off guard at the mention of the other boy, “What’s there to say?”

“Hm, really? You seem quite attached to him.”

“Shijie!” Wei Ying tries to keep his ears from heating, “I just want to tease him a bit. He’s such a fuddy duddy, and you know me.” Wei Ying gives a little laugh.

“Mn.” he suddenly hears from the woods behind him.

Wei Ying whips around to see who other than Lan Wangji.

“Ah, Lan Zhan!” Wei Ying jumps, “What are you doing here?” Wei Ying tries to ignore the snickers coming from his sister and Nie Huaisang.

‘Traitors.’ he thinks.

“I’ve come to get you for Brother.”

“Ah, you’d better go with him then.” Luo Qingyang gives him a sly smile. Wei Ying stands up.

“You’re right. Much better than staying here.” Wei Ying shoots an accusatory look over the group, and gets more laughter in return. “Lead the way, Lan Zhan, my one true friend.”

“...Mn.” he also looks at the group, “The lunch break is almost over.” He begins to walk back towards Cloud Recesses.

Wei Ying walks behind Lan Wanji in silence for a bit, it feels somewhat awkward. He can guess how long he’d been standing there based on his sister’s reaction. 

“Lan Zhan… How long were you standing there? Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I did not want to interrupt. Your sister and friends saw when I arrived.”

“Yeah, I figured...”

Silence hangs heavy in the air.

“So… where are we going?” Wei Ying notices they’d made it back to the training fields.

“Brother wanted to give you private lessons.” he says as he leads Wei Ying up the hill.

“Yes, but where?”

“Almost there.” They reach the top of the hill and Wei Ying sees a handful of smaller buildings. They look like private residences. Lan Xichen stands outside one of them.

“Wangji, Master Wei, you made it.” he calls out to them.

“Brother.” Lan Wangji greets. Wei Ying follows. 

“I thought it’d be nice to practice somewhere quiet with a nice view.” 

Wei Ying can see quite a lot of the Cloud Recesses from atop this hill. The green tops of trees break up the cool grey, stone buildings and pathways. Disciples making their way to afternoon classes look like ants in the distance. Wei Ying can even see the sheer cliff face by the wall that he visited the night before, the rules far to small to be read from this distance.

“It’s amazing up here!”

Lan Xichen smiles, “I’m glad to hear. Shall we get started?”

“Oh right, of course.”

“Great. I thought you might want to see an up close example of what you’ll be learning, so, Wangji, can you demonstrate?”

“Mn.” he steps forward and begins to run through stances similar to the training drill they did earlier. However, this time, Lan Wangji slides his feet and flicks his wrist to create swirling gusts of wind around him. The longer he goes, the more it looks like an intricate dance. The air twirls around him like ribbons, completely under his control. The dance ends when Lan Wangji flips into the air, and descends back down sitting atop a concentrated ball of air. He dissipates it and approaches his audience.

“Wow, Lan Zhan! That was amazing!” Wei Ying claps.

“Mn.” he bows.

“Very well done, Wangji. As you can see, airbending is all about following the movements of least resistance. You should think of it as moving with the air as opposed to through or against it. Come sit with me.” He sits in the lotus position. Wei Ying follows. 

“A lot can be learned in meditation. I’m sure it’s the same for waterbending.” He lets Wei Ying nod before continuing. “When you close your eyes, picture how the air moves around you. Feel how it bends and flows. When you can picture it clearly in your mind, try to push it together between your hands.” 

To demonstrate, Lan Xichen closes his eyes and face his palms together. A moment passes before a small ball of concentrated air appears between his hands. A glance to the side shows Lan Wangji doing the same. Lan Xichen reopens his eyes.

“Would you like to try?”

“Sure.” Wei Ying closes his eyes. He tries to picture the air around him, encasing him like an aura.

“Good, good. Take your time.”

Wei Ying pictures the air flowing in shades of blue. He imagines how the wind contours around the grass. With each breath, he feels how the air flows in and out of his body. He doesn’t know how long he sits there before he directs his attention to the current of air in front of him. Slowly, he brings his hands up, palms facing together. He pictures the air flowing around and between his fingers. Then, he imagines the ball of air. He wills, in his mind, his fingers to push the air, and form the shape. 

Eventually, his palms start to tingle, and he dares to crack his eyes open. There, between his palms, a small ball of air floats and bobs. 

“Very good. You’ve taken to airbending exceptionally well. I suppose that’s to be expected from the Avatar.” Lan Xichen says as Wei Ying drops the ball of air. 

“Really? It didn’t feel like I was doing much at all.”

Lan Xichen gives him a knowing smile. 

“I want you to picture the air how you were in meditation, but keep your eyes open this time.”

“Alright.” Wei Ying takes a deep breath and tries to imagine the aura of air around him again. 

“Try to concentrate on one arm.” Lan Xichen instructs.

Wei Ying holds out his right arm and concentrates on the air around it. Immediately, air starts to swirl around it in tendrils.

“Very good. Now, see that tree over there. Try throwing the air to it like you would a disk.” he points to a tree near the edge of the hill. 

Wei Ying extends his arm with a flick and the concentrated air flies from his arm. The burst hits a low hanging branch of the tree severing it. 

“Oh shit!” Wei Ying exclaims. Lan Xichen laughs.

“That is called an Air Blade.” he explains, “The air is propelled away from the body with enough speed that, when shaped correctly, can cut like a sword. Most basic offensive airbending techniques work the same way.”

Lan Xichen explains techniques and Wei Ying listens. Lan Xichen has Lan Wangji demonstrate when necessary. Lan Wangji’s bending is hard for Wei Ying to put into words. It’s beautiful, and powerful, and feels intricate even though each movement is simple and concise.

Lan Wangji floats back to the earth after demonstrating how to jump and climb using condensed air. He nods at his brother, then returns to his spot off to the side to resume meditation.

“Very good, Wangji. Thank you.” he turns to Wei Ying, “Would you like to try?”

“Sure!” Wei Ying skips into position. He’s felt good this whole lesson. Perhaps it comes with being the Avatar, but he’s taken to Airbending like a Jiang in water. It’s done wonders for his confidence. 

“Alright, so first you’ll want to…” Lan Xichen begins explaining, and Wei Ying feels a little bad tuning him out but he’s found it’s easier this way.

He closes his eyes and recalls the memory of Lan Wangji moments before. 

‘First I’ll…’ he thinks as he pushes his hands down, commanding the air to condense. 

‘Now I can…’ he lifts his foot and slowly brings it back down in front of him. Feeling something solid, he steps up and opens his eyes. Swirling air supports his weight. Wei Ying smiles. 

“Very good, now be careful and you can-” Lan Xichen starts but Wei Ying’s laughter cuts him off.

“This is amazing!” he shouts, taking another step, then another. Soon he’s running and leaping through the air. Below him Lan Xichen smiles and claps. 

“Look at me go, Lan Zh-” Wei Ying cuts himself off. Lan Wangji, eyes closed, hasn’t moved from his meditation spot. Wei Ying feels a pang of disappointment that the other boy isn’t watching him as closely as he was watching him. Before Wei Ying can question those feelings, he goes to take another step, and is surprised when he doesn’t find anything. His stomach drops, then the rest of him is falling.

“Look out!” Lan Xichen shouts.

“Shit!” Wei Ying closes his eyes and braces for impact with the ever approaching earth.

Instead of hard dirt and grass, Wei Ying feels soft fabric. There’s an arm behind his back and another under his knees as his descent slows and stops. He slowly cracks an eye open. 

Above him, a white ribbon flows around silky, black hair.

“Lan Zhan!” Wei Ying startles, “Looks like you’ve got me falling for you already!”

Lan Wangji makes a choked noise before turning away, ears bright red. 

Suddenly, his words and current position occur to Wei Ying and he feels his own face heat up.

“Ehem.” Lan Xichen walks over to the two of them. “That was quite dangerous. Are you alright, Master Wei?”

“Ahh, y-yes.” Wei Ying stammers out as Lan Wangji puts him back on his feet.

“That’s good.” Lan Xichen says, shooting his brother a look Wei Ying can’t comprehend. “Well I think we should stop for the day. You did very well, we made good progress. Dinner will be available soon. Wangji, let’s talk later.” He bows. Wei Ying bows back.

“Thank you for the lesson.” Wei Ying feels an air of awkwardness settle while Lan Xichen walks away.

“So,” he turns to Lan Wangji, “uh, thank you, for earlier I mean, Lan Zhan. Do you- uh, want to grab dinner with me?”

Lan Wangji stares at him. Wei Ying feels like there’s a lot in his seemingly neutral expression that he just can’t decipher yet. Another moment passes.

“No.” Lan Wangji says, then quickly bows and walks away. He enters one of the homes they’ve been practicing by and shuts the door.

Wei Ying stands in stunned silence, suddenly alone.

“Well damn, ok.”

Wei Ying stares at the door a bit longer then turns to make his way back down the hill. 

The non-bending students seem to be sparing in pairs. It doesn’t take Wei Ying long to spot Nie Huaisang and his brother.

“Whaa! Jiang Cheng, help me!” Nie Huaisang dives behind Jiang Cheng, and all but shoves him towards their opponents. 

“Damn it, Nie Huaisang! If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were working with them against me.”

“What? No! I’ve never seen those two before in my life!” he grins at him and all three of them laugh.

“Ahah! I knew it!” Jiang Cheng turns to swing his practice sword at Nie Huaisang, who fails to dodge.

“Ahh! Mercy! Mercy!”

“Hey! Back to training, all of you!” Lan Qiren shouts at them. Jiang Cheng helps Nie Huaisang up.

“Yessir!” they all shout back in unison.

Wei Ying can’t help laughing.

“Ah! Wei-xiong!” Nie Huaisang shouts, spotting him.

“Nie-xiong!” Wei Ying shouts back with a wave, “How are things? My little brother isn’t too much trouble, I hope.”

“Oh, please shut up. I was just beginning to enjoy a life without Wei Wuxian.”

“I love you too, Little Bro.”

Nie Huaisang takes their exchange to brush himself off. He hands his practice sword to Jiang Cheng, who takes it unconsciously. He pulls his fan out to replace it. 

“Wei-xiong, are you here, perhaps to escort us to dinner?”

“Well-” he is cut off by a bell signifying the end of lessons, “It seems I am. Shall we? Nie-xiong? A-Cheng?”

“We shall.” Nie Huaisang says with a flutter of his fan. “Jiang Cheng here let slip some… information about you. I was hoping to confirm and discuss with you.”

“Did he now?” Wei Ying shoots a look at his brother who pointedly looks away. That simply won't do. Wei Ying is meant to do the gossiping, not be the gossip. But, that doesn’t mean he can’t enjoy the spotlight while he’s in it. Let it be known, Wei Ying has never passed on an opportunity to play along.

“Very well. This one will tell you what you wish to hear, but not here. The information you seek is far too precious, wouldn’t you say?”

Nie Huaisang smirks at him. “This one sees no fault.”

“Fantastic!” Wei Ying leans in close to whisper, “Come to mine and Jiang Cheng’s room. Quarter to curfew. May the _Emperor smile_ down upon these disciples.” He winks. 

Nie Huaisang’s smile widens in understanding. “Of course I would not miss it, Young Master Wei.”

“Ok, what the fuck is going on? You lost me.” Jiang Cheng cuts in from behind them. Wei Ying sees the genuine confusion on his face and breaks. Both he and Nie Huaisang laugh until their sides hurt. 

“Ok, ok,” Nie Huaisang says, catching his breath, “in any case, I’d better track down Jin Zixuan. I’ll let him know I’ll be _unavailable_ tonight.” He winks.

“Good, do that.” Wei Ying says, still clutching his sides, “Let him know that he’s specifically not invited. No peacocks allowed.” Wei Ying can finally stand straight again, his jaw sore from laughter. “Sorry, I don’t make the rules. Make sure he’s not going to rat us out either.” 

“Oh, you won’t have to worry about that.” Nie Huaisang flourishes his fan before bowing and turning away. He’s practically skipping as he takes his leave. 

Wei Ying smiles after his friend until something bounces off his head. 

“Ouch!” he turns to see Jiang Cheng, both wooden sticks still in his hands. 

“That’s payback. Now are you going to tell me what you guys were talking about?”

Wei Ying rubs at the tender spot. “We were just planning our party! You’re invited too. Come on, it’ll be fun!”

“It’s in our room. I don’t really have a choice.” Jiang Cheng smiles despite himself. “Alright, help me figure out where to return these.” He waves the practice swords. 

“Hmmm.” Wei Ying taps his chin in consideration. “No thanks, A-Cheng. Besides, I promised Shijie I’d eat with her and I don’t want to keep her waiting. Best of luck! Don’t take too long!” Wei Ying waves over his shoulder as he walks away.

“Oi! Wei Wuxian!”

☁︎𑁍☁︎𑁍☁︎

“Naturally beautiful, graceful, obedient, hard-working, and thrifty.”

“Wei Wuxian!” 

Wei Ying laughs and stands up, cup of Emperor’s Smile in hand. Walking around the dorm room, he continues.

“Must come from a respectful family. Cultivation level not too high, personality not too strong, not too talkative, voice not too lou-”

“Wei Wuxian! Stop talking!” Jiang Cheng stands, blocking Wei Ying’s path.

“Jiang Cheng. This is very important. We’re trying to find you a cultivation partner. I will only have the best for my little brother, and these qualities are important. Nie Huaisang agrees with me.” Wei Ying looks at his friend still sitting at the table. 

Nie Huaisang slams the contents of his cup and begins pouring himself another before responding. 

“Mmm, voice not too loud. Yes, very important. Take it from me. I’m something of a love expert.”

“See, Jiang Cheng, very importan-” Wei Ying is cut off again by Jiang Cheng grabbing his lapels.

“You are so insufferable.” Jiang Cheng glares.

“Oh, so rough, A-Cheng.” Wei Ying gestures to his grip on his robes, “I didn’t realize that’s what you’re into. Nie-xiong, we can accommodate, yes?”

Nie Huaisang looks up again from his drink. He raises his fan to cover a smirk. “Oh, yes I can _definitely_ accommodate.”

An expression of shock and horror flashes across Jiang Cheng’s face. He lets go of Wei Ying’s robes and snatches up his cup instead. 

“Whatever. You two are both stupid and I’m not nearly drunk enough to stand you.” He downs Wei Yings drink, trying his best to ignore the snickering from his companions. 

Nie Huaisang gestures for them to rejoin him at the table. 

“Jiang-xiong, you’re great, but you seem like you need a break and another drink.” He pours one for him. “Wei-xiong, I think it’s about time you start spilling the information you promised me.” He pours liquor out for Wei Ying as well. 

Wei Ying sits down with a sigh and takes a generous sip. “Of course, Nie-xiong, I am a man of my word.”

“You’re the Avatar.”

“Yes, I am.”

“Show me.”

Wei Ying holds his hand out palm up and concentrates. It’s a little more difficult with the soft buzz of alcohol in his system, but soon a small concentrated ball of air begins swirling above his palm. He lets it stabilize for a second before passing his other hand over his cup. A thin ribbon of Emperor’s Smile trails behind the hand before forming a ring around the air ball. 

Wei Ying feels himself smile. 

‘ _Not bad for my first time controlling two elements at once._ ’ he thinks.

“That’s amazing!” Nie Huaisang exclaims. 

Wei Ying lets the air dissipate before looking up. He pulls the liquor into its own small ball and pops it into his mouth.

He gives Nie Huaisang a wide smile and a wink. 

“What a show off.” Jiang Cheng says, but Wei Ying can see how impressed his brother looks. 

“Thank you, thank you.” Wei Ying reponds with an exaggerated bow. When he raises up he meets Nie Huaisang’s eyes, a devious look in his eyes. 

Wei Ying suppresses a shiver, feeling, for the first time, unnerved by his new friend. 

People are going to treat him differently when they know he’s the Avatar. Wei Ying has known this. He’s been preparing himself. Though, it seems not enough.

His family hadn’t treated him any differently. Not in the ways that really mattered. 

Lan Wangji and Lan Xichen have only ever known him as the Avatar. 

Nie Huaisang met Wei Ying, and now he’s met the Avatar. That gleam in his eyes lasted maybe a second, but that’s all it needed for Wei Ying to feel the weight of it. 

He feels like a tool, an instrument. People see the Avatar as an asset, a means to an end. 

Is this what he has to look forward to?

“Hey, um, I’ll be back in a bit.” Wei Ying says.

“Ok, Wei-xiong. Duty calls.” Nie Huaisang calls from practically on top of Jiang Cheng. Wei Ying didn’t catch how he got there, and with his chest suddenly feeling devoid of air, he can’t bring himself to care quite yet.

He offers a shallow smile before leaving the dorm, hopefully not frantically enough to arouse suspicion. 

The cold, quiet air feels like a punch to the gut of his awareness. Wei Ying lets out a sigh of relief with his back against the door. Slowly, he unclenches stiff fingers from the fist he didn’t know he was making. He takes another deep, refreshing breath before setting off to wonder Cloud Recesses a second night in a row. 

‘ _I wish it wasn’t me._ ’ Wei Ying thinks, tilting his head back to look up at the stars. It’s cloudy. 

He frowns. He feels guilty. The Avatar exists for peace, for people. Why shouldn’t people use him? Hell, Wei Ying didn’t give a second thought to past Avatars being used to achieve peace. Wei Ying would be trying to befriend the Avatar right now if it wasn’t him. He feels more guilty.

All Avatars of the past have accepted this, so Wei Ying should too, right? In fact, since the Avatar reincarnates with each generation, Wei Ying has already accepted it. Wei Ying’s past lives have all done it.

Did they all feel this hesitation? Could they just jump right in? Did _they_ want to be the Avatar?

Wei Ying thinks about Avatar Xiao Xingchen. He went missing two years before Wei Ying was born. Was he alone? Did he leave on purpose? Did he have two years of peace before he died?

Wei Ying remembers learning about past Avatars in Jiang lecture halls. He remembers exchanging conspiracy theories with Jiang Cheng. 

“I bet he ran away to be with a lover.” he’d said. 

“That’s selfish.” Jiang Cheng said.

“How judgey! I think it’s romantic. Ah, to run away, be rouge cultivators together. Don’t chug vinegar just because you’ll never have a lover!”

He was joking when he said it. And now it’s Wei Ying who’s jealous. How ironic. 

Avatar Xiao Xingchen was known for following the chaos when he was alive. He did so much good, even in a time of peace. Wei Ying can’t think of running away from his Avatar...ness. Not until he’s contributed something, anything really, to peace. 

“Sorry to call you out after curfew, there was a lot to get done.”

The voice snaps Wei Ying out of his head. Looking around, he realizes he’s wandered back to the residential area Lan Xichen taught him in earlier. 

Quickly, Wei Ying jumps off the path and behind a tree. Peaking around the side, Wei Ying spots Lan Xichen and Lan Wangji. 

“I received a message from Da-ge.” Lan Xichen continues, “Tomorrow, I’m leaving for Qinghe tomorrow. I’ve made arrangements for almost everything except…”

‘ _Teaching me._ ’ Wei Ying fills in for him. 

There’s silence. 

‘ _Guess I’ll be joining the other Lan airbenders sooner than expected._ ’ Wei Ying starts to think, 

“Mn.” Lan Wangji says before his brother can continue. “I will teach Wei Ying.”

Wei Ying’s stomach flips. That was the first time he’s heard Lan Zhan say his name. He definitely would have remembered.

Glancing around the tree again, he sees Lan Xichen smile.

“I know. I’ll be back in two weeks time. Now, I’ll let you get to sleep.”

Just like that, they bow to each other and split to their respective houses. Wei Ying slumps down behind his tree. 

It feels like an understatement to say Wei Ying’s mood on this walk has been bad. Now he’s broken yet another rule eavesdropping. Wei Ying should feel even worse than he did earlier, and yet…

‘ _Wei Ying_ ’

His name never sounded better than in Lan Zhan’s quite baritone. 

The flush rises to his ears before he can stop it.

‘ _Wei Ying_ ’

He wants to hear it again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really love Huaisang. Jin Zixuan is fun to bully. Lan Zhan cures anxiety. Next time: Wangxian fluff? Who knows?

**Author's Note:**

> They've made it to Cloud Recesses! Can you tell I'm a fan of ✨Sibling Interaction✨? Next time: Wei Ying and sibs make some friends.


End file.
